Working at 80?

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As millions of Americans reach the standard retirement age of 65, many are finding they must work well into their 70’s to make ends meet. New Job figures… reveal that 14 million Americans are self-employed (According to the LA Times), and with 401k’s being so hard hit by the recession, many Americans are finding it difficult to retire. For those having no retirement account or pension, and very little social security, leaving the work force at 65 is just not an option.

For some, there is a bright side to this budget crisis for graying America: Some people enjoy working well into their seventies! K-LOVE radio reported on an eighty year old great-grandmother who works at a prison teaching male inmates GED skills. She has been doing it for ten years and she loves it. Her husband is about the same age, and he works as well.

Another glimmer of hope may lie in the service industry: For many years, U.S. call centers have been outsourcing jobs to countries like India, but according to Bay Area SEO Web Guru, TaeWoo Kim, call centers are starting to court U.S. Retirees who generally have a firm grasp of the English language and are fairly adept at communicating with clients regarding service issues. These jobs are not physically demanding, so they may be ideal for those in their later years. Mr. Kim also stated that retired salespeople are highly employable as they are often bored with retirement, and make very effective sales representatives.

According to CNN Money, A quarter of middle-class Americans are now so pessimistic about their savings that they are planning to delay retirement until they are at least 80 years old. One can only hope that most older Americans will not have to work far beyond the age of 65, but for those who do, there may be suitable work available for them to do. For those who cannot work, perhaps we can learn from countries such as those in the Asian continent, where the children care for their aging parents, who in turn can help out with the grandchildren.